Game summary for October 6, 2011, In Search of Adventure campaign, Keep on the Borderlands adventure; present characters included Illithor (elf veteran-medium), Nicholae Dragos (cleric acolyte), Stanislav Dmitros (fighter veteran), and Theobald Goblinbane (dwarf veteran).
The group returned to the caves and met with the Bloody Fist tribe, including the chieftain, Right Fist, whose hand was coated in dried blood. The orcs agreed to team with the party to wage war against the goblins and hobgoblins in two days’ time. Meanwhile, they suggested the party cause disruption and chaos, as they had been, among other tribes.
The party asked about some of the other caves, and Right Fist pointed out where to find kobolds, goblins, hobgoblins, gnolls, and bugbears. Stanislav informed the party that bugbears were some of the largest and more violent goblinoids, and the group decided to visit them. Outside the cave, they discovered a sign written in kobold, goblin, and orcish stating, “Safety, security, and repose for all humanoids who enter—WELCOME! (Come in and report to the first guard on the left for a hot meal and bed assignment.)” The promptly entered and went to the right.
The team’s light alerted the guards to the left who called out to them in the guttural language of the goblins. Ignoring it, they pressed on down a slope and opened a door to find a room filled with bugbear men and women who snatched up axes and swords. Meanwhile, the bugbear guards from down the hallway closed in on the other side, catching the party between a dozen armed and violent goblinoids!
The team fought valiantly but quickly found themselves nursing grievous injuries. Several bugbears went down, but the party could not hold the line. Germanus found well with his glaive, and Stefan stepped up to swing his hammer, but even the two warrior retainers were not enough to turn the tide. The team opened a way through toward the exit and fled at full speed. The bugbears cut off the escape route of Germanus and Stefan while others ran after the fleeing party.
Stefan fled deeper into the caves, Stanislav was cut down in his tracks, and Germanus fled another direction. Nicholae was surrounded and beaten into unconsciousness. The bugbears then bargained with the survivors and ransomed Nicholae for 25 platinum coins.
With Nicholae recovered along with the corpse of Stanislav, the team ran back to the keep to lick their wounds and learn from what went wrong.
The above summary is for a game session of Dungeons & Dragons BECMI / RC edition played by the Phoenix Gaming Club.
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